A balm for the millions of people who face Christmastime with a mixture of dread and obligation, this anthology, which includes fiction, nonfiction, and poetry on these and many other related subjects, deflates the notion of the "perfect" holiday season. Here the holiday-beleaguered reader can commiserate with his fellows—including Dave Barry, Charles Bukowski, Augusten Burroughs, Billy Collins, Jay McInerney, Fiona Maazel, George Plimpton, David Sedaris, Charles Simic, Hunter S. Thompson, James Thurber, Calvin Trillin, and John Waters—and warm himself in the glow of a little dark, neurotic, and unflinchingly honest humor.

"Thank the 'X' in 'Xmas' for The Dreaded Feast, [which] collects essays, short stories, and poetry that attack Hallmark holidays with all the neurotic humor one expects from contributors like Jonathan Ames, Fiona Maazel, and Calvin Trillin."—The New Yorker